A guide to keeping your resolutions

January is the month of resolutions. With a new year comes the opportunity to change. Nowhere is this more evident than Anytime Fitness, where there has been a reported growth of 20 new members during the month. Compare that to the three to five new memberships the gym gets during a normal month.

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By Tyson HillNews Writer - St. James PlaindealerTwitter: @plaindlrTysonEmail: plaindlr@stjamesnews.com

St. James Plaindealer - St. James, MN

By Tyson HillNews Writer - St. James PlaindealerTwitter: @plaindlrTysonEmail: plaindlr@stjamesnews.com

January is the month of resolutions. With a new year comes the opportunity to change. Nowhere is this more evident than Anytime Fitness, where there has been a reported growth of 20 new members during the month. Compare that to the three to five new memberships the gym gets during a normal month.

“January is always a busier time in the gym industry,” says Personal Trainer Beth Henderson. “People want to make fresh and new commitments.”

The Scranton University Journal of Psychology says only eight percent of people will reach their resolution’s goal with more than 40 percent failing within the first month. Still, those people who make resolutions are ten times more likely to achieve a goal than those who don’t set any resolutions at all.

If you haven’t already fallen short of your resolution there are a couple of steps you can take to ensure you reach your goal. The first step is to create a goal that is attainable.

“People tend to make unattainable goals,” says Henderson. “I encourage people as a trainer to determine more attainable goals.”

Henderson recommends goals that look forward only a short distance. A simple, one-step goal is more attainable, and creates a path upon which you can reach your overall goal. It also provides motivation, as you can see yourself improving and reaching your goals throughout the process. It takes 21 days to establish a new habit and six months for that habit to become a lifestyle.

The second step is to keep your routine fresh. The body can become accustomed to a routine and what was once new and exciting can become boring and monotonous. The idea is to keep the routine fresh so keeping your resolution doesn’t become a chore, but rather an exciting part of your day.

An important step to keeping your resolution is going out and doing something. It seems simple and self-explanatory, but just leaving your house to workout can be difficult after a long day of work.

“If there are days where you can only get in the gym for ten minutes, do it,” says Henderson.

It can become easy to take a day off, but just going into the gym once a day for a short while can become a routine part of your day – you can begin to add more time to your routine as you progress through your goals.

If you find yourself slipping out of the routine that you began, invite your friends to become a part of your resolution. Studies show that communicating your goal is beneficial to completing your goal. Even posting a status about your progress on Facebook will help you to continue moving forward in your resolution.

Page 2 of 2 - The final step in completing a New Year’s resolution is to keep trying. When the time comes in mid-March where you haven’t worked out in weeks, have begun eating unhealthily, are spending too much time in the office or breaking whatever resolution you may have set for yourself, don’t give up!

A resolution can be set any time of the year. You’ve recognized you want to change something about your life, so stick to it. There is nothing that says you can’t start over as many times as it takes to achieve your goal. Recognize what made you fail on your first try, and fix the problem. Just keep trying.

By Tyson HillNews Writer - St. James PlaindealerTwitter: @plaindlrTysonEmail: plaindlr@stjamesnews.com

St. James Plaindealer - St. James, MN

By Tyson HillNews Writer - St. James PlaindealerTwitter: @plaindlrTysonEmail: plaindlr@stjamesnews.com